Was Police Brutality The Cause Of This Boy's Injuries?

Photo of  Joseph Williams after being in custody

14-year-old Joseph Williams from Tullytown, PA, went out to Walmart with his 19-year-old cousin. Subsequently, he was detained by store security and then arrested by Tullytown police after being accused of shoplifting $31.93 worth of products.

After being handcuffed, the youngster escaped and ran toward the highway. The police claim that they fired a taser at the youth and that the injuries to his face resulted from the boy falling forward and landing on his face while still being handcuffed.

But, frequently, mothers do know best and Marissa Sargeant, Joseph's mother, states that he must have been punched several times in order to have the injuries he displayed. Mother's complaints involved the fact that her child was taken to the hospital without her consent, where they determined that the boy had a broken nose and both eyes were blackened and swollen. In addition, the police questioned this minor youth without an adult guardian being present.

Buck's County District Attorney David Heckler released a statement in which he alleges that all the injuries displayed by this boy resulted from his falling on his face without being able to use his arms to break his fall. But Marissa Sargeant still believes that her boy has more injuries than could be explained by falling on his face. He has cuts and bruises beyond what would be demonstrated from a fall - and she wonders how both of his eyes could be blackened and bruised.

Ms. Sargeant may have a number of points here. Young Joseph was detained and held for three days after his injuries, at a juvenile detention facility, during which time the mother was not allowed to visit. And then the first thing she sees are his facial injuries. Exactly what was going on here? Was the police department and corrections trying to hide the severity of his injuries? At least that was what I would have been thinking. No matter what anyone may think of the alleged actions of this boy, how is it that law enforcement questions a minor child without the presence of an adult guardian? Children's minds operate differently and when police officer yell at them or continuously tell them that they have committed a crime, they may eventually agree because they're hungry, tired, promised they can go home. For kids, police officers represent authority and they may be motivated to please that adult, especially when you put a black child in the custody of a white police officer. So, a child needs to be accompanied by an adult advocate to provide more objectivity and prevent exploitation and false admissions of wrongdoing.

Tullytown police

Then there is the issue of the injuries themselves. As a mental health nurse, I have treated my share of teens who have fallen face down on the hard floor or pavement without being able to brace for the fall. I have never seen this severity of injury, however. In my opinion, something else must have happened to cause that amount of damage. I do hope that some more objective people can find the truth of the matter, since I believe that no matter what this boy did, he didn't deserve to be hurt this way.

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